A Wolf in Lamb's Clothing
by K'Immielvr
Summary: A Highlander/Robin of Sherwood crossover. Kenny, on the run, comes across the Merry Men, but can he be trusted?


**A Wolf in Lamb's Clothing**

Title: A Wolf in Lamb's Clothing  
Author: K'Immielvr kimmielvr@yahoo.com   
Category: Crossover Highlander: The Series and Robin of Sherwood  
Characters: Kenny and all the main characters of Robin of Sherwood.   
Rating: PG-13   
Summary: Kenny, on the run, comes across the Merry Men, but can he be trusted.

Disclaimer:  I do not own Kenny (thank the gods!) he belongs to Davis Panzer (and they are quite welcome to him).  Nor do I own Robin of Loxley, Marion, Little John, Friar Tuck, Will Scarlet, Much, Nasir (though, I wish I did!), Edward of Wickham, Sir Guy of Gisburne, and the Sheriff of Nottingham.  They all belong to series creator, Richard "Kip" Carpenter and others.

Originally an entry in the MacBeta Crossover Lyric Wheel Challenge.  The lyrics used were taken from "Carousel" by Mr. Bungle.

**************

_Near the village of Wickham, England, circa1200 CE_

Finally he could rest; he had eventually lost the immortal that had chased him for the past week.  The last eighteen years had been much the same, always hiding or running.  If not from an immortal after an easy Quickening, then soldiers, or foresters.  But as Amanda told him when she first found him as the only survivor of his razed village, he must live by his wits and cunning to come through what could be a very long life as a child.  

That was how Kenny lived, but he knew it was taking a toll on his still young soul.  He was tired of running.  He couldn't fight back.  He needed to stop this endless flight.  He needed to find a protector, someone who could help him hone his skills, so he could finally stop being the hunted and, for once, become the hunter.

He sat on the edge of the forest, just outside a small village.  It was much like his own, the inhabitants, like his dead parents, serfs to the local lord.  A lamb in a nearby pen caught his eye, and he watched it hungrily.  It had been a long time since he fed upon a good meal.  Kenny would wait until nightfall though; he knew how much poor serfs valued their livestock.  The loss of a good lamb would bring heavy penalties from their lord and master.

Then, unexpectedly, Kenny noticed the villagers being drawn to a group of seven strangers.  They were an odd group; all were heavily armed with swords and bows, and a couple of the men carried quarterstaffs as well.  Yet despite all their weapons, they were dressed as peasants.  However, that wasn't the strangest part about them, for amongst their number was a lady with long, red curls, and even she dressed like a man.  She carried a bow and quiver as confidently as the others, as did the fat priest who was also with them.  A small grin came to Kenny's face, as he realized that this group must be that of Robin of Loxley, the so-called Hooded Man, and his band of outlaws.  Their legend had spread far and wide, over the years, of how they robbed from the rich and gave their takings to the poor villagers who weren't able to pay the exorbitant taxes levied upon them by the Sheriff of Nottingham, and King John.

Somehow, the immortal boy felt a pull to them.  Maybe these men - and one woman - whom he thought he had much in common with, would take him in and give him shelter deep in the heart of Sherwood, where most people, sane people anyway, feared to travel.  After all the village of Loxley was destroyed the same way his was.  Perhaps they might be persuaded to teach him some skills in fighting, after all if a young woman, and an overweight friar could learn to fight, then surely he could as well.

Suddenly, the little lamb that he'd watched with so much greed earlier distracted him.  He very nearly drooled at the sight of the plump little creature.  Maybe the outlaws could wait for a while, but he decided his stomach couldn't; besides, he was fairly adept at tracking, surely he'd be able to find them once they returned to the greenwood.  Stealthily, Kenny crept into the pen, drawing his dagger as he cornered the lamb.  But the animal must have somehow sensed its impending doom, and with an alarmed bleat, it made a break for the other side of the pen.  Kenny spun around, trying to grab it, but as he twisted he slipped, and fell with a splat into the mud.  Quickly recovering, he made another lunge for the now panicked young sheep.  He missed again, and let out a curse in his frustration.  

Without warning, Kenny found himself being lifted into the air.  As he started to struggle, a deep, laughing voice, said.  "What have we here, Much?  A little wolfcub after Edward's sheep?"  Kenny kicked at the man holding him, but not only was he incredibly strong, he was also extremely large.  Little John held him securely under his arm, and Kenny got a glimpse of the other outlaw, a redheaded young man - not much more than a boy himself - with a dopey grin.  He must be Much.  He was taken to the center of the small village of Wickham, and dropped rather unceremoniously on the ground in front of the gathered crowd.

"What have you found, John?"  Kenny glanced up at the speaker; though not anywhere near as tall as the giant, this man was still quite tall and with long dark hair.  Soft hazel eyes peered down at Kenny with a mix of curiosity and gentle humour.   Somehow, the immortal child guessed that this young, handsome man was Robin Hood, chosen of Herne the Hunter, the god these pagans worshipped, to be his son and champion.

"We found him trying to steal one of Edward's lambs, Robin," said Much eagerly, as always trying to please his older foster brother.  

An older, bearded man standing next to Robin, whom Kenny assumed was Wickham's head villager, raised his eyebrows in surprise, but then his face softened.  "Well, he does look half-starved.  Where'd you come from, lad?"  Kenny looked around at the sea of faces surrounding him.  Apart from Robin, Little John, Much and Edward, they were assorted peasants, but the other outlaws stood out from them.  There was the beautiful lady with a soft, kind smile; she could only be Lady Marion, of whom the stories told was a nobleman's daughter, and Robin Hood's wife.

"Don't be frightened," she knelt down beside him, gently stroking his hair.  "You're safe here."  He smiled back at her, his eyes wide - innocent and scared.  There was also a friendly smile from the outlaw priest, but the other man, a surly, heavyset man, just stood with his arms folded, looking down dispassionately at him.  Kenny remembered there was one other outlaw that had entered the village with them; a dark, foreign man with swords strapped to his back.  Now he was nowhere to be seen.

Turning back to Robin and Edward, Kenny made a pretense of speaking hesitantly.  "Me name's Kenneth…Kenneth of Copelade."  He allowed himself a secret smile; the small, insignificant village that he'd once come across was in a remote area of south Lincolnshire, and he doubted that any of these people would have ever heard of it.  This was confirmed by their puzzled expressions.  "It's about three days away.  Soldiers came.  They…they…killed my parents," he sobbed, at the same time noting the sympathetic, but unsurprised looks.  Such atrocities were all too common throughout England.  The priest crossed himself.  "I hid…then I ran.  Didn't know where…just ran."  Marion took him into her arms as he cried tears for her benefit.  "I'm sorry I tried to kill your sheep, but I was so hungry.  I haven't ate for days."

Edward smiled.  "It's no matter, lad.  You're welcome to sup with us, even stay.  My own lad would be welcome of some company, wouldn't you Matthew?"  The young boy standing behind him nodded eagerly.  "You and he are about the same age."

//I doubt it//  Kenny's face remained wretched as he made several sniveling noises on his sleeve.  //Stay here and become a serf again!  No chance!  Never!//  Hoping he looked sufficiently pathetic and earnest, he raised his eyes to Marion's kindly ones.  "Lady, are you staying?"

Robin answered in her place.  "No Kenneth, we can't stay here long.  It's too risky, for us and for Wickham.  You do know who we are?"

Kenny didn't miss the surly man - who must be the one they called Scarlet - give a disgruntled sigh, and look around suspiciously.  "That's it!  Let everyone know who we are!" Then he hissed to Robin,  "We need to get moving!"

Robin ignored him as Kenny replied to his question.  "Even down in Lincolnshire, we heard of Robin Hood, and his gang of outlaws, an' how you only steal from the rich."  He allowed a shy smile to spread over his face before turning to Edward.  "I'm sorry, but I'm really too scared to stay in a village.  I'm scared soldiers will come again.  I know," he paused as he wildly searched Robin's and Marion's faces for reassurance.  "I'd feel safe deep in the forest with you.  You could teach me how to fight the Normans, and I could join you, help you."  He begged with his voice and eyes.

Marion and Robin exchanged glances.  He was doubtful; forever having to look over your shoulder for the Sheriff's next trap was no way for a boy to live, but Marion gave him a pleading look.  "He's scared stiff Robin.  We can keep him in Sherwood for a time, until he feels safe enough to live somewhere else."

Robin wasn't given a chance to answer as there was a movement from atop the barn they were standing in front of.  An accented voice called down.  "It is the Sheriff…and Gisburne!"  The voice was quickly followed by the foreigner Kenny had seen earlier, now skillfully descending a thick rope to the ground.  Able to see him more clearly he thought he must be a Saracen, somehow brought back from Palestine during the last Crusade, but there was no time to stop and ponder on this further.

The outlaws were already moving towards the trees.  Kenny cried out, this time truly afraid that they might leave him in the village.  Marion grabbed his hand and dragged him to his feet and the two of them scrambled to safety.  He heard Robin shout behind him, "Will! Nasir! Come on!" And risked a quick glance behind to see that Scarlet and the Saracen were guarding their escape, their bows ready.  If they stayed back too much longer the soldiers would surely overrun them.  However, seconds before they would have been spotted both men abandoned their 'posts' and ran into the forest after the others.

It wasn't long before they were all deep inside the thick, lush forest and safe from attack.  Kenny was walking with Marion and the priest, Tuck.  They were telling him tales of some of their adventures, behind him he could hear Scarlet grumbling to Little John and Much about having to watch over a kid, "We're outlaws, not wet nurses!"  A little distance ahead of them walked Nasir, always watching, always listening.  The man was armed to the teeth, two swords sheathed in a special harness strapped onto his back.  The front straps held two daggers, and he casually held his bow in his hand.  Just the look about him spelled killer, but when he turned and caught Kenny's eye, the Saracen gave him a friendly smile, and raised an amused eyebrow.  Robin, though, had disappeared.  Kenny couldn't really recall when, except that it was around the place they encountered a thick, strange white mist and he could have sworn he saw a giant stag.  The others didn't seem to miss him at all. 

*****

Robin approached his god, Herne the Hunter, Lord of the Trees, and stood before the seven-foot tall part human, part stag.  //Time for yet another riddle,// he sighed to himself.

Herne spread his arms wide.  "Know there's something lurking underneath the shape, with a mask over his head." Robin frowned, not understanding - which was not new.  He rarely understood Herne's riddles until the moment they revealed themselves.  "Merry go round your head - Awake asleep alive or dead."

The Hooded Man shook his head, and voiced his puzzlement.  "Herne, help me, I don't know what you mean."

"The powers of light and darkness must be held in balance.  Protect the eternal child from the darkness." And with those parting words, the mist swirled up around Herne as he gradually faded from Robin's sight.

//Eternal child?// Robin thought, over and over again, as he made his way back to their camp.  There was a feeling scratching at the back of his brain that the child must be Kenneth; he was the only strange child they'd encountered.  But eternal?  Whatever Herne meant, Robin hadn't figured yet, but it did reinforce his uneasy feelings that the boy would not only hinder the outlaws, but put them all in danger.

*****

After dining on the rich meat of the King's venison, most of the outlaws drifted away from the fire.  Only Robin and Marion stayed close, and Kenny was not far from Marion's side; she was his advocate in the group, and he knew it.  He lay against her side, pretending to drift off to sleep, but he was listening intently to every word.  "He can't stay with us, Marion.  It's too dangerous, for him and for us."

"But he feels safe here; he knows he won't have to live through such a horror again here."  She was gently stroking the boy's hair again.

Robin was beginning to feel exasperated.  "I know, but what if Gisburne does somehow find us?  What if he gets lost, and stumbles upon a forester?  What would become of him then?"  He ran his fingers through his long dark hair, thinking aloud.  "One of the villages is no good, too many memories for him.  A monastery?"  Kenny didn't move, even kept his body relaxed so that they wouldn't realize he'd heard them, but his eyes shot open in alarm.  Holy Ground would certainly be safe, but there was no way he could spend any amount of his life behind cloistered walls.

"Monastery?  Where?" asked Marion.  Robin shrugged, then called Tuck over to ask him if he knew of a place.

The priest rubbed his chin.  "Well there's Croxton Abbey.  Abbot Michael's a fair, just man, unlike some other clerics.  He's a little over zealous for my tastes, but that might prove exciting for the boy.  Would certainly be more lively than the monastery I was noviced at," he chuckled.

"Then tomorrow, you'll take him to Croxton, Tuck?"  The priest happily agreed.  "And watch after him, something Herne said.  He needs protecting."  

Kenny thought quickly about what he should do.  He could sneak away tonight, but it would be very easy to get totally lost in the dark so deep into Sherwood, besides they'd come looking for him the moment they noticed he was missing, and would more than likely find him.  Whereas, if he went with Tuck he could easily slip away, and in no time be long gone.

*****

Kenny guessed that they had traveled quite a distance from the outlaws' camp.  It was slow, but steady going with Tuck.  He decided this was far enough; it was time for their company to part ways.  Tuck was huffing and puffing a bit, so he suggested that they should rest for a minute, to which the priest readily agreed.  As he rested on a fallen tree trunk, Kenny picked up his staff and started to go through some moves he'd seen.  "Be careful lad!"  Tuck called out as Kenny started swinging the long stick around.  But he soon had it under control again, and catching the priest unawares pushed him backwards off his seat, with one swift struck of the staff.  Then he made a run for it.

It was only a hundred or so paces to the road, and Kenny emerged, running right onto it as Sir Guy of Gisburne and half his men were riding back to Nottingham.  He careened right into one of the soldiers, who grabbed him, roughly.  "My Lord!" he shouted, gaining Gisburne's attention.

Sighing, the knight turned in his saddle.  "What is it now?"  When he saw the boy, he dismounted, and after handing the reins to another soldier approached Kenny.  "What are you doing here, urchin?  Poaching perhaps?"

"No.  Nothing!"

"That's, nothing, my ***lord*" Gisburne barked with a snarl.**

"Nothing, my lord," repeated Kenny with a gulp, as he stared up to the tall blond knight in fear.  "I…I…I can help you though."  Gisburne snorted in disbelief, but allowed him to continue.  "I can show you where Robin Hood is, my lord.  The priest, Friar Tuck, he's just back there."  

Gisburne would have liked nothing more than to believe him, but this was only a young child, lost in Sherwood.  "Be gone with you boy.  Go home, and consider yourself very lucky."  Just then there was a disturbance further down the road as more soldiers arrived, led by Robert de Rainault, the Sheriff of Nottingham himself.  Gisburne addressed his lord and master as de Rainault raised a questioning eyebrow at Kenny.  "My lord, this urchin thinks he can show us where those Wolfsheads are."

"Perhaps he can, Gisburne," he replied with a drawl, his large, bulbous eyes sparkling deviously.  He signaled to his soldiers, who stepped aside to reveal his former chaplain under guard.  Though beaten, Tuck looked generally unharmed.

*****

A short time later, they crept closer to the campsite, Kenny urged the soldiers to be quiet, and to keep low.  It would be hard enough sneaking up on the outlaws in daytime, without fifty noisy, soldiers trampling about.  He pointed out a tree near the path they would have to walk along. "There's a sentry posted up there."

"Which one?" hissed Gisburne, he feared if it were the Saracen they would have no chance of sneaking up behind him.

Kenny whispered tentatively, "It was Much when I left."  

He hoped the boy was right.  Even his men could deal with the half-wit.  Nonetheless, he sent his two best scouts out to stop Much - or whomever the sentry was - from raising the alarm.  They shed most of their armour, retaining only their crossbows, so to reduce the chance of making noise, and left with their commander's orders to take him alive, if possible.

It took several minutes for the two men to work their way through the thick cover to get close to the tree Much was sitting in, keeping watch.  Fortunately for Gisburne, this time he had picked the right men for the task.  One edged closer and closer to the base of the tree, taking his time, so not to alert the young Wolfshead.  The other stayed back; he picked up a small rock and placed it in a leather strap.  When he saw his partner nod his readiness, he gave his sling a few quick spins and released the rock.  It went flying up into the tree, hitting Much painfully on his chest.  He gave a small cry, and in his surprise, lost his balance.  The soldier waiting under the tree grabbed him, silencing him as he fell to the ground.

As soon as Gisburne saw they had taken out the sentry, he signaled the rest of his men down the path, and to encircle the outlaw's camp.  This plan was going so well, that as he followed his soldiers, he couldn't help but be slightly amazed.  //This could actually work!//  

There were only three outlaws to be seen, and they were resting lazily around the embers of the fire.  Robin didn't know what it was, but something alerted him to the danger.  Herne's warning floated through his mind, "Awake asleep alive or dead."  He sprung to his feet, rousing the other two as the soldiers began to press in.  Little John grabbed his staff and swung it fiercely over his head, forcing half a dozen of the soldiers to back off a little, as Robin and Marion watched them carefully, swords at guard.  It would be hopeless to fight them though.  Three against fifty - most armed with crossbows - even if Scarlet and Nasir hadn't gone hunting, they wouldn't have a chance.

"Surrender Wolfsheads!" Gisburne yelled out to them as he strode forward.  "You can die here, or die in Nottingham.  It makes no difference to me."  He signaled to his men behind him, and they brought their prisoners forward.  "And if you need a little extra incentive…"

Robin hesitated, watching the swords go to Tuck's and Much's throats, then with a vicious curse he threw down his sword.  The other two quickly followed, and the soldiers closed in on them.  A cart was brought forward, and the prisoners loaded onto it.  As Robin climbed the steps, he saw Kenny.  "You!  Why?  Why help them after what they do?"

Kenny glared hatefully at the Hooded Man.  "You didn't want me.  They found me, and I had knowledge they wanted."  He saw that Robin - and Marion, who looked at him with a particularly wounded expression - didn't understand.  "I survive anyway I can."

"Quiet boy!" snarled Gisburne as he knocked Kenny out of his way with a forceful blow that caught him on the mouth.  "This is no more concern of yours."  

Kenny let the blood trickle freely from his lip for a moment, then approached the cart.  Robin knelt down so they were face to face.  "I would have followed you." He wiped his mouth.  "I'm not just a boy, but I needed a protector.  You failed me," he hissed with venom.

His mouth gaping, Robin stared at him.  There was no sign of any small wound on his lip.  "The cut?  How did it heal?"  Then it dawned on him, as he murmured to himself.  "The eternal child!  How old *are* you?"  //Know there's something lurking underneath the shape with a mask over his head.//  This child was hiding so much.  If only he'd known.

Kenny shook his head.  "I'm older than you," was all that he would give away.

There wasn't time to try and discover more as Gisburne roughly pulled Kenny aside, causing him to fall to the ground.  "Leave the boy alone, Gisburne."  At his lord's voice, the knight turned to face him.  "He's been invaluable to us.  It's amazing, isn't it Gisburne, that a - what?  Ten year old boy can do in one morning, what you've been trying to do for years!"  de Rainault dismounted from his gray stallion, and with the kindest, friendliest smile his sly face could muster, he beckoned to Kenny.  "Come here boy.  Where did you come from?"

Gisburne made a face behind the Sheriff's turned back. What had the boy done?  Nothing more than shown them where the outlaws were camped.  It was *his* plan, and *his* men that captured them!  One day he would teach his master a lesson he wouldn't forget.  He turned his pent up wrath onto the prisoners.  "Where are the others?  Scarlet and the Saracen?"

Coming over to the side of the cart, Little John looked down on him.  "As if we'd tell you.  Hopefully they've got enough sense to steer well clear of here now."

"Don't sound so smug, Wolfshead.  We'll round them up soon enough," snarled Gisburne in reply.  "Move them out!" he ordered.  

*****

Several yards away, well hidden in the forest's undergrowth, Scarlet rested a hand on Nasir's shoulder.  He could sense that the Assassin was ready to leap out and fight the whole army.  It would be courageous, but insane to try, but Scarlet knew that would not hinder his comrade.  Nasir would fight until he fell to free his friends; likewise Scarlet would die for them all, but now was not the time.  "We'll wait Nasir, but we'll get them out."

"When?  In Nottingham?" Nasir eyes narrowed doubtfully, his own hand resting on one of the daggers strapped to his chest.

"Yeah," grinned Scarlet sourly.  "We'll find a way in, somehow.  And out again.  And when we do," he looked murderously at Nasir, "that treacherous boy's mine."  In reply, the Saracen only half looked at him, and raised an eyebrow.  They crouched down lower as the cart began to trundle past them, and both men watched with some surprise, and much contempt as the Sheriff of Nottingham rode by with Kenny sitting in the saddle in front of him.  

De Rainault's voice floated down to them.  "Well Kenneth, I think with my tutelage you could go far in this world."


End file.
